Concord TAC Sends Safety Priority List to Public Works, Elects New Chair

CARLISLE — May 5, 2026 — Concord Transportation Advisory Committee elects new chair and advances Baker Avenue redesign toward final bid. The committee unanimously elected member Ellen Quackenbush as chair effective June 1, replacing two-year chair Mark Galis, at its May 5 meeting. Jacobs engineers Brian Montejunas and Erica Lindeberg presented a draft final design for the Baker Avenue and Main Street intersection in West Concord, featuring new signal equipment, ADA-compliant curb ramps, accessible pedestrian signals, and through-lane widths narrowed from 11 to 10 feet to allow shoulders of at least three and a half feet — still short of the five-foot minimum needed for a dedicated bicycle lane. Town engineer Steve Dugrand said project funding expires at year-end with no extension, pressing the committee toward rapid final design and bid advertisement. The committee voted 6-1 to forward its draft committee charge to the town manager and Select Board, with member Rebecca dissenting, and voted 5-0 to transmit a ranked list of lower-cost safety projects to Public Works, with Pine and Upland Road traffic calming and the West Concord to Concord Center corridor receiving top-priority support from all five members who responded.